Conquering Cyber OverloadRuminations on productivity, creativity, and quality of life in our digital world.https://www.psychologytoday.com/
en-US30Mon, 27 May 2013 20:00:45 -0400Thu, 22 May 2014 18:33:14 -0400Is Background Music a Boost or a Bummer?https://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/conquering-cyber-overload/201305/is-background-music-boost-or-bummer
How music affects your productivity depends on the nature of the task and the demands of your work. It can distract you, but it also can affect your mood and arousal levels in ways that can help.CognitionCreativityEnvironmentExtroversionIntelligenceIntroversionMeditationProductivityStressWorkhttps://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/conquering-cyber-overload/201305/is-background-music-boost-or-bummer#comments125684 at http://psychologytoday.comMon, 27 May 2013 20:00:45 -0400Conquering Cyber OverloadJoanne Cantor Ph.DInterrupt Me for Five Seconds? — Fuhgeddaboudit!https://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/conquering-cyber-overload/201302/interrupt-me-five-seconds-fuhgeddaboudit
Interruptions are a constant in daily life and especially at work. But a recent study reports that even a five-second interruption can dramatically increase our errors when we return to what we were doing. And the study doesn’t just apply to aging boomers who are known for a declining working memory capacity. It was conducted with college students!CognitionMediaMemoryNeuroscienceWorkhttps://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/conquering-cyber-overload/201302/interrupt-me-five-seconds-fuhgeddaboudit#comments118739 at http://psychologytoday.comMon, 25 Feb 2013 11:04:37 -0500Conquering Cyber OverloadJoanne Cantor Ph.DIs the Internet a Drug or Just an Attractive Nuisance?https://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/conquering-cyber-overload/201301/is-the-internet-drug-or-just-attractive-nuisance
Whether or not people are “addicted” and whether or not what they do is harmful, many people find themselves spending increasing amounts of time online, often at the expense of other activities, like getting things done at work. Businesses need to find ways to reduce productivity loss without facing a backlash from employees.AddictionAttentionCareerCreativityPornographyProductivityPsychiatrySexSleepSocial NetworkingSport and CompetitionTime ManagementWorkhttps://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/conquering-cyber-overload/201301/is-the-internet-drug-or-just-attractive-nuisance#comments114648 at http://psychologytoday.comWed, 02 Jan 2013 10:35:59 -0500Conquering Cyber OverloadJoanne Cantor Ph.DHow to Succeed Without Really Tryinghttps://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/conquering-cyber-overload/201210/how-succeed-without-really-trying
You don’t have to sleep on the job to enhance your memory. And you don't have to be a workaholic either. Brief wakeful resting enhances your memory for what you've just done. And I’m talking about just 10 minutes of rest and memories that last a week or more.CognitionEducationEnvironmentGuiltMemoryMotivationNeuroscienceSleepWisdomWorkhttps://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/conquering-cyber-overload/201210/how-succeed-without-really-trying#comments109126 at http://psychologytoday.comTue, 23 Oct 2012 10:48:34 -0400Conquering Cyber OverloadJoanne Cantor Ph.DFive Reasons We Can't Stop Distracting Ourselveshttps://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/conquering-cyber-overload/201207/five-reasons-we-cant-stop-distracting-ourselves
You’ve got an imminent deadline for that creative project. And yet, you can’t stop checking your email or Facebook, playing your favorite Zynga game, or seeing what’s happening in sports, entertainment, or the news online. Why are these temptations so irresistible even when you’re up against the clock? And how can you arrange to resist these time-wasting demons?AddictionAttentionCreativityEnvironmentLonelinessMediaMemoryMotivationNeuroscienceProcrastinationSelf-EsteemSocial NetworkingSport and CompetitionTime ManagementWorkhttps://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/conquering-cyber-overload/201207/five-reasons-we-cant-stop-distracting-ourselves#comments100958 at http://psychologytoday.comMon, 16 Jul 2012 11:51:48 -0400Conquering Cyber OverloadJoanne Cantor Ph.DIs it Alzheimer’s? Normal Aging? Or Simply Cyber Overload?https://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/conquering-cyber-overload/201205/is-it-alzheimer-s-normal-aging-or-simply-cyber-overload
Do you sometimes wonder if that thing you forgot or that name you can’t remember is the beginning of Alzheimer’s? If so, you’re not alone, judging by the turnout at a recent UW Hospital public health symposium.AgingCognitionHealthMediaMemoryNeuroscienceProductivityhttps://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/conquering-cyber-overload/201205/is-it-alzheimer-s-normal-aging-or-simply-cyber-overload#comments96039 at http://psychologytoday.comMon, 21 May 2012 12:24:46 -0400Conquering Cyber OverloadJoanne Cantor Ph.DMindus Interruptus: Distractions are Costlier than You Think!https://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/conquering-cyber-overload/201202/mindus-interruptus-distractions-are-costlier-you-think
Let's face it. We hardly ever have the luxury of focusing on one thing anymore. No matter where we are, our gadgets are there, too, ready to beep, ping, display an alert, or serenade us with our chosen ring-tone.CognitionEducationMemoryTime ManagementWorkhttps://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/conquering-cyber-overload/201202/mindus-interruptus-distractions-are-costlier-you-think#comments89111 at http://psychologytoday.comWed, 29 Feb 2012 10:15:35 -0500Conquering Cyber OverloadJoanne Cantor Ph.DDon’t Speak 'Til You See the Whites of Their Eyeshttps://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/conquering-cyber-overload/201111/don-t-speak-til-you-see-the-whites-their-eyes
"What can I help you with?" asked the Apple Store clerk as he kept his eyes focused on what he was entering into his iPhone.
"I'll wait ‘til you're finished," said I.
"No, go ahead," said he. "I can multitask."
"No, you can't!" said I, which finally got him to look at me and listen.AttentionCognitionNeuroscienceWorkhttps://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/conquering-cyber-overload/201111/don-t-speak-til-you-see-the-whites-their-eyes#comments80860 at http://psychologytoday.comWed, 30 Nov 2011 11:32:20 -0500Conquering Cyber OverloadJoanne Cantor Ph.DWhere Did I See That? When Paper Beats Pixelshttps://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/conquering-cyber-overload/201110/where-did-i-see-when-paper-beats-pixels
OK, I agree. I could never give up my Kindle. E-books are taking up a greater and greater percentage of titles sold, and for good reasons. But there are at least three ways in which print on paper is superior to words on a screen.AdolescenceCognitionDeceptionEducationMediaMemoryhttps://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/conquering-cyber-overload/201110/where-did-i-see-when-paper-beats-pixels#comments75988 at http://psychologytoday.comMon, 03 Oct 2011 17:43:33 -0400Conquering Cyber OverloadJoanne Cantor Ph.DMining Your Brain to Jump-Start Your Creativityhttps://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/conquering-cyber-overload/201108/mining-your-brain-jump-start-your-creativity
It's easy to spend lots of time working, but hard to come up with something new. Creativity may be necessary in a wide variety of realms—but where does that aha! moment come from? In a recent episode of "The Writer's Almanac," Garrison Keillor quoted an interview with J.K. Rowling on how she got the idea to write a novel about Harry Potter.CognitionCreativityEnvironmentMemoryNeurosciencehttps://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/conquering-cyber-overload/201108/mining-your-brain-jump-start-your-creativity#comments72462 at http://psychologytoday.comMon, 22 Aug 2011 17:14:40 -0400Conquering Cyber OverloadJoanne Cantor Ph.DDoing Your Best Work When You're Not "Working"https://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/conquering-cyber-overload/201107/doing-your-best-work-when-youre-not-working
Here's the good news about our digital devices: We have convenient access to virtually limitless information. No matter how much we know, we can always get more information on any topic with another press of a button. But the good news is also the bad news: More is not always better.BurnoutCognitionCreativityDecision-MakingEnvironmentMediaMemoryNeurosciencePersonalitySleepTime ManagementWorkhttps://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/conquering-cyber-overload/201107/doing-your-best-work-when-youre-not-working#comments68354 at http://psychologytoday.comThu, 14 Jul 2011 16:30:05 -0400Conquering Cyber OverloadJoanne Cantor Ph.DBeyond the Digital Burqahttps://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/conquering-cyber-overload/201105/beyond-the-digital-burqa
There are many of good reasons to communicate digitally. It's convenient, of course, and we often have no choice because we're miles away from the people we want to talk to. But more and more, we seem to rely on emailing, texting, tweeting, and Facebooking when a face-to-face interaction is available. What are we hiding when we text instead of being there?Body LanguageMediaNeurosciencePrimingRelationshipsSocial Lifehttps://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/conquering-cyber-overload/201105/beyond-the-digital-burqa#comments64853 at http://psychologytoday.comTue, 31 May 2011 16:23:39 -0400Conquering Cyber OverloadJoanne Cantor Ph.DFlooding Your Brain’s Engine: How You Can Have Too Much of a Good Thinghttps://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/conquering-cyber-overload/201102/flooding-your-brain-s-engine-how-you-can-have-too-much-good
CareerCognitionConsumer BehaviorCreativityDecision-MakingMemoryNeurosciencePersonalityProductivityWorkhttps://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/conquering-cyber-overload/201102/flooding-your-brain-s-engine-how-you-can-have-too-much-good#comments56132 at http://psychologytoday.comSun, 27 Feb 2011 12:36:17 -0500Conquering Cyber OverloadJoanne Cantor Ph.DCompeting with The Daily Show: Keeping Students' Attentionhttps://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/conquering-cyber-overload/201012/competing-the-daily-show-keeping-students-attention
"You're crazy to even try!" came the blistering comment from a colleague. I had just reported that I planned to give presentations to students about turning off their laptops and smartphones during class and pay attention to lectures. . . A few months before that, I'd thought the same thing. EducationMediaMemoryNeurosciencePhilosophySport and Competitionhttps://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/conquering-cyber-overload/201012/competing-the-daily-show-keeping-students-attention#comments51764 at http://psychologytoday.comSun, 12 Dec 2010 17:19:22 -0500Conquering Cyber OverloadJoanne Cantor Ph.DSomething Terrible May Have Happened: Stay Tuned!https://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/conquering-cyber-overload/201008/something-terrible-may-have-happened-stay-tuned
"The plane is circling the airport to burn off fuel before it makes an emergency landing. Stick with us right here. We'll bring you all the details." I kept hearing on-air reports like this through my earpiece as I waited to appear on a national cable news channel last month. Although there were many important events that day, the host returned four times to the airplane story ("still circling, stay tuned"), with no new information until handing it over to the host of the next program. It was finally reported that the plane had landed safely without incident. This makes me think more about how our digital culture has affected our need for the news. Because we CAN know about something as soon as it happens we feel we MUST know it NOW.AdolescenceAnxietyConsumer BehaviorCreativityEmpathyEnvironmentHealthMediaMotivationPoliticsProductivitySleepSocial NetworkingStressWorkhttps://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/conquering-cyber-overload/201008/something-terrible-may-have-happened-stay-tuned#comments47194 at http://psychologytoday.comSun, 29 Aug 2010 14:14:06 -0400Conquering Cyber OverloadJoanne Cantor Ph.DThis is Your Mind on Media: You’re Not Crazy—You’re Human!https://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/conquering-cyber-overload/201007/is-your-mind-media-you-re-not-crazy-you-re-human
“Anyone who's scared by a film must be raving mad,” says Peejay, one of 130 people who have commented on a recent story in the London Daily Mail. The article describes our research on the long-term effects of frightening movies.[1] Having performed an informal content analysis of the relevant comments, I can report that about 10% of the entries are like Peejay’s. Another 11% of the commenters claim that reality is much scarier than fiction. And 3% complain that such research is a waste of time and money. The remaining 76% of the commenters meet Peejay’s criteria for raving madness, I guess. AnxietyCreativityEnvironmentFearMediaMemoryNeuroscienceStressTraumahttps://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/conquering-cyber-overload/201007/is-your-mind-media-you-re-not-crazy-you-re-human#comments44767 at http://psychologytoday.comThu, 01 Jul 2010 14:27:44 -0400Conquering Cyber OverloadJoanne Cantor Ph.DThe Fault, Dear Brutus, Is Not in Our Gadgets But in Ourselveshttps://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/conquering-cyber-overload/201006/the-fault-dear-brutus-is-not-in-our-gadgets-in-ourselves
"The Internet is making us stupid!" —"No, smarter!"There has been quite the back-and-forth in The New York Times between people like Nicholas Carr, who argues that the Internet is making us dumber; and Steven Pinker, who contends that it's making us smarter. The NYT has weighed in with its own editorial, arguing that the Internet is "a global library of fact and data . . . [that can] enrich our lives."I agree with all of them. CognitionDietEnvironmentIntelligenceMediaMotivationSelf-ControlSocial NetworkingWorkhttps://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/conquering-cyber-overload/201006/the-fault-dear-brutus-is-not-in-our-gadgets-in-ourselves#comments43963 at http://psychologytoday.comSun, 13 Jun 2010 12:14:11 -0400Conquering Cyber OverloadJoanne Cantor Ph.DFive Reasons We Multitask Anywayhttps://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/conquering-cyber-overload/201005/five-reasons-we-multitask-anyway
AttentionCognitionCreativityMemoryNeuroscienceProductivityTeamworkWorkhttps://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/conquering-cyber-overload/201005/five-reasons-we-multitask-anyway#comments43317 at http://psychologytoday.comMon, 31 May 2010 22:01:14 -0400Conquering Cyber OverloadJoanne Cantor Ph.DMining Your Inner Moron: Why Multitasking Is Such a Wastehttps://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/conquering-cyber-overload/201005/mining-your-inner-moron-why-multitasking-is-such-waste
"Right this way, folks!" shouts the carnival barker. "REDUCE YOUR BRAIN POWER WHILE INCREASING YOUR STRESS LEVELS!" Are you tempted to follow him? Of course not. And yet, if you spend a lot of time multitasking, you're achieving the same result.AttentionCognitionDecision-MakingMemoryNeuroscienceStressWorkhttps://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/conquering-cyber-overload/201005/mining-your-inner-moron-why-multitasking-is-such-waste#comments43312 at http://psychologytoday.comSat, 29 May 2010 11:33:30 -0400Conquering Cyber OverloadJoanne Cantor Ph.DStrategic Sleeping: Snooze and Release Your Musehttps://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/conquering-cyber-overload/201005/strategic-sleeping-snooze-and-release-your-muse
Why is my brain more creative when I'm asleep? And how can I prime it to be even more creative? Neuroscience research says that while I'm sleeping, my brain is not. It's actively trying to make sense of what I've been working on. It also suggests that new insights occur when the brain relaxes its focus and allows distant connections to be made between previously unrelated ideas. But what does this mean in practical terms?AttentionBurnoutChild DevelopmentMemoryNeuroscienceSleephttps://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/conquering-cyber-overload/201005/strategic-sleeping-snooze-and-release-your-muse#comments42745 at http://psychologytoday.comSun, 16 May 2010 18:29:40 -0400Conquering Cyber OverloadJoanne Cantor Ph.DSleep for Success: Creativity and the Neuroscience of Slumberhttps://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/conquering-cyber-overload/201005/sleep-success-creativity-and-the-neuroscience-slumber
I've gotten into the habit lately of waking up with friends and collaborators. It's not what you think. These helpers are the good ideas that come to me in the middle of the night or—if I'm lucky—first thing in the morning. I've long believed there was value in the expression, "let's sleep on it." But now that I've reviewed some of the very recent research on what goes on in the brain during sleep, I'm ready to take much better advantage of my sleep-induced ideas.CreativityEnvironmentMemoryNeurosciencePlaceboSleepUnconscioushttps://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/conquering-cyber-overload/201005/sleep-success-creativity-and-the-neuroscience-slumber#comments42716 at http://psychologytoday.comSat, 15 May 2010 17:35:07 -0400Conquering Cyber OverloadJoanne Cantor Ph.D